Good morning all, I have purchased, at auction, a Komatsu D31-16 crawler and would like to enquire about the year model and a problem or two. The serial number on the machine is 26741 and I was wondering if this could help as far as the year model is concerned. I also have noticed that on occasion, the machine steers very slowly to the left, but normal to the right. It seems to steer and track better when in reverse. If I try to steer whilst moving forward, the machine will stop and if the steering brake is touched very softly, the machine will start steering again. She doesn't seem to push at maximum power at times. I have not serviced the machine yet and am curious to know whether it could just be filters and oil that might need replacing. I however, do not want to do this service, only to find out that my problem is deeper inside the transmission. Any help will be much appreciated.
Hey mate I don't know much about komatsu dozers but if it were a cat I would tell u to look at the lever controll hyd box in a cat I've had this problem the L series seem to suffer from this the worst. In that model the controll box is under the seat. I've found when things get worne and the seals start leaking the track clutch wants to stay engaged and the brake doesn't want 2 engage properly. A komatsu may b completely different but if I were u that's what I would b looking at first if this is the problem do something about it now as this is hell on ur drive and ur clutches n brake. Let us know hou u go.
Maybe the steering valve is not functioning correctly.Or the clutch discs (or other parts) may be worn. Someone like Tony (tctractors) would know,as he's been fixing these things for years. Here's some pics of my D31S-16 Series loader...made in the 70s.The first pic is of a steering clutch & brake assembly,before removal. I had to repair the Final Drive,among other things,& Tony & members of this forum were a great help. Komatsu quoted $25K for the repair...I did it for about $4K.Plus I invented a few new swear words & built a good physique too!A great learning curve. I'd advise you to get a parts & repair book,& do a proper service on the machine.These machines were quite well liked in their day.. Jim